In fact not in the true sense of cloud computing, Microsoft had started the project codenamed Hailstorm. Initially called .NET My Services it was supposed to be a framework to build applications upon. However for some reason it did not make its mark.

With various changes in the internet shelf of Microsoft, like introduction of Live Services, Skydrive, Office Workspace it was soon becoming ominous that MS shall be launching a new framework for the developer community to embrace.